Confucius (2010) - Review by Sameer Mamoon

Making of the film

Filmed on location in China’s Heibei province and Hengdian World Studios in Zhejiang. There was quite a bit of backlash in response to Chow Yun-fat’s casting. People did not want the filmmakers to turn Confucius into an action hero. Following the release of the trailer, there was a threat of a lawsuit by one of Confucius’s alleged descendants, due to possibility of there being a romantic subplot between Confucius and royal concubine Nanzi. The film was supposed to be released in 2009 to commemorate Confucius’s birthday, but had to be pushed to January of 2010.

Historically Accurate?

Aside from adding in moments like Confucius arguing for the slave boy, Qi Sigong’s life, embellishments to his interactions with Nanzi, and how Yan Hui dies, the makers of the film took extra care to be as accurate as possible. Parts of this movie are even lifted straight from the pages of the Analects.